


El Huerto Secreto

by Mbufton12



Category: Amar a Muerte (TV)
Genre: Actress Val, Alternate Universe - Celebrity, Barista Juli, F/F, Famous Val, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, Poor Juliana has 3 jobs, They're friends for 5 seconds, coffee shop AU, kind of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-12
Updated: 2020-09-12
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:55:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,697
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26426005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mbufton12/pseuds/Mbufton12
Summary: Mexico's up and coming actress Valentina Carvajal is the ultimate IT girl.  Everyone loves her and why shouldn't they? She is gorgeous, sweet, and loving with all her fans.  But Juliana Valdes doesn't get the hype.  She's just a person after all.But things change when Valentina comes into the cafe where Juliana works.  Valentina decides she wants Juliana to notice her, but will it be so easy?
Relationships: Valentina Carvajal/Juliana Valdés
Comments: 33
Kudos: 215





	El Huerto Secreto

**Author's Note:**

> Writing Prompts on Tumblr posted this:  
> Fans usually stalk celebrities, but ironically, the charismatic movie star that everybody swoons over has become obsessed with you-the only one unfazed by their charms. Now, you struggle to keep a low profile as your not-so-secret admirer goes to great lengths to track you down.
> 
> I thought of Juliantina instantly and this kind of just poured out of me. When I first watched Amar a Muerte I wanted to write a story for it, but I felt like I shouldn't because I don't speak Spanish, but this prompt just felt too perfect for them, so please accept my humble attempts at a Spanglish story for our lovely ladies!
> 
> Some things though. Sergio came out way gayer than I intended for him to be, so sorry if he feels OOC. It's kind of accidentally a coffee shop AU and a Celebrity AU all rolled into one. I hope you enjoy!  
> Molly

She knows who the girl is as soon as she walks through the door. The whole café knows too. Everyone turns to look at her within seconds. An audible murmur rolling through the entirety of the small shop in a flash.

She looks up and recognizes her from the massive billboards that are all over town. It would almost be impossible not to know who this girl is right now. She is everywhere, not to mention gorgeous.

Valentina Carvajal.

Mexico’s it girl. Juliana practically scoffs to herself. She doesn’t really get all the hype. 

A little girl who can’t be more than five, jumps up from her table and rushes over to Valentina with an excited smile on her face. Valentina’s face lights up when she sees her. Juliana can hear her talking in a quiet voice to the little girl.

“Well hello,” she says softly but she’s clearly happy. She crouches down to be on the same eye level as the girl. “And what is your name?” 

The bodyguards that slipped into the café discreetly behind Valentina shift to a table in the corner. Juliana watches them go, surprised that they don’t draw more attention from the other patrons.

Her eyes shift back to Valentina as the little girl pulls back from whispering in her ear.

“Paloma?” The girl nods enthusiastically and Juliana smiles just a bit at her reaction. She is so excited it’s palpable. Valentina smiles too as she studies the little girl’s face. “A beautiful name for a beautiful girl,” she whispers as she pinches the girl’s cheek softly.

A woman who is clearly the girl’s mom comes over. “Come on sweetie, let’s go.” She holds her hands out and the little girl takes a step away from Valentina. Her mom scoops her up and faces Valentina. “Thank you.”

Valentina stands up straight. “It’s my pleasure.” She focuses on Paloma again. “Goodbye bebecita,” she hums and the little girl giggles before hiding her face in her mom’s neck.

They walk away and Juliana realizes she has been staring at the interaction for much too long. Valentina turns toward her at the counter and makes her way across the shop in three long strides. Juliana’s eyes fall to her long flawless legs without her meaning for them too.

She only looks up as Valentina reaches the counter. As soon as their eyes meet, she knows she has been caught.

Valentina smirks as she tucks a piece of hair behind her ear. “Hi,” she says with a laugh cushioning the word. She pulls a small backpack off her back and sets it on the counter. Her eyes never leave Juliana’s.

“Hi,” Juliana responds dumbly. She mentally chastises herself. This is ridiculous. Valentina is just another person. She centers herself. “How are you today?”

“I’m good,” she answers calmly and finally breaks their eye contact. A blush colors her cheeks and Juliana’s brow furrows.

“What can I get you?” she asks trying to move on from the intense moment.

Valentina’s eyes find hers again as she pulls a small wallet from her bag. “I’ll get an espresso and a concha por favor,” she orders quickly.

“Okay,” Juliana types into the computer in front of her and totals up the cost. Before she can even say the price out loud, Valentina is handing her enough to cover four orders.

“You can keep the change,” she says with a subtle wink.

“You don’t have to do that,” Juliana tries to object.

“I know,” Valentina says with an air of confidence that makes Juliana want to scoff again. She appreciates the tip obviously but watching rich people flash around all their extra cash really makes her crazy sometimes.

“I’ll bring it over,” Juliana says curtly as she nods in the direction of the bodyguards waiting for Valentina.

Valentina seems caught off guard by Juliana’s dismissal. Juliana turns to get Val’s order ready and Val watches her for a second before smiling coyly and putting her wallet away. She turns and walks away from the counter still smiling. Juliana peeks over her shoulder and watches her go.

She really doesn’t get all the hype. Or at least that’s what she tells herself as her heartrate slowly drops back down to normal.

“Your coffee,” Juliana says as she sets down the cup for Valentina. “And your concha.” The saucer of the espresso cup and the plate the concha is on knock together making a light clinking sound as she sets them down. Valentina reaches out and pulls them further onto the table.

“Gracias,” Valentina says barely above a whisper. Her voice is soft and airy, it makes Juliana’s heart throb. Valentina looks up at her and smiles sweetly. Juliana has to actively remind herself to look away from Valentina’s gorgeous blue eyes.

“Can I get you guys anything?” she manages to ask the security team that have yet to say a word since they entered the café. They don’t even look at her. Their eyes are constantly sweeping the premises.

“Don’t mind them,” Valentina excuses the question with a wave of her hand. She looks at both of them briefly before her eyes find Juliana again. Juliana’s brow must be furrowed again because Valentina is suddenly stumbling through an explanation. “They never eat when they’re on duty.” She looks back at them again with a disapproving shake of her head. “I have tried many times, but they claim it’s distracting.”

Juliana feels better knowing that it’s their own choice not to eat and not some weird mandate from Valentina. Valentina’s eyes find hers again. She hesitates for a second before nodding and turning to go. She is stopped by a hand at her wrist. She turns and looks down at the soft hold Valentina has around her arm before she looks up.

“Lo siento,” she mumbles as she drops the hold. “Would you care to join me?” she asks with more confidence. She gestures to the empty seat next to her and smiles brightly. Juliana can tell she expects her to say yes.

“I can’t,” she answers quickly. She hooks a thumb over her shoulder. “I’m the only one working.” It’s not a lie, but she knows they aren’t busy. She could easily sit for a while if she wanted to. She is desperately trying to convince herself that she doesn’t want to.

“Maybe another time?” 

She can hear the hope in Valentina’s voice, but she isn’t sure what to make of it. Valentina is a famous actress. She is probably the most beloved person in all of Mexico right now. She doesn’t actually think Valentina cares about spending a few minutes talking to someone who just served her coffee.

“Why?” she can’t stop herself from asking. Valentina seems surprised by the question.

“What do you mean why?” she asks the question with a laugh in her tone.

Juliana turns to face her fully and crosses her arms over her chest. “Why would someone like you,” she pauses as she gestures to Valentina’s body. Her eyes trace the same path up and down Valentina’s body that they did before and she realizes she really needs to stop doing that. “Want to spend time with someone like me?” she finishes her question as her eyes meet Val’s again.

“Someone like you? What? Someone beautiful?” Valentina fires back without even thinking. Cockiness is oozing from the actress. The smirk on her face matches her tone.

Juliana ducks her head and laughs softly. “You certainly know what you’re doing don’t you?” she asks the question under her breath. When she looks up it’s obvious that Valentina has heard it anyway. “Enjoy your food,” she offers without much enthusiasm. She goes back to the counter.

When she turns to look back at Valentina the actress is watching her closely. Her smirk has dimmed but only slightly. She quirks a brow playfully at Juliana then turns back to her food. She picks up her espresso and laughs shaking her head as she lifts it to her lips.

Juliana has to remind herself that she is actually supposed to be working. She stares for a second longer and she is about to turn around to clean the espresso machine when she realizes both of Valentina’s bodyguards are looking at her. She wonders for a split second if they see her as a threat until she registers their facial expressions. They are watching her with amused bewilderment. She wonders why until she realizes that she just rejected a potential advance from a famous actress who looks like a living angel. They have probably never seen that happen to Valentina.

She rolls her eyes and gets back to work.

Valentina stays in the café for another twenty minutes while she slowly eats her concha and sips on her espresso. She doesn’t talk to Juliana again, but a few other people approach her. She signs a few things and takes a couple pictures with her adoring fans. She even takes one of the pictures on her own phone and asks the girl she is posing with if she can post it. The girl looks like she might die on the spot.

Juliana busies herself with cleaning the counters and display cases for the baked goods. She tries not to pay attention to what Valentina is doing but she catches herself watching more than a few times. How often does she get to be this close to a famous person?

Valentina finally stands to leave and Juliana pretends to be reorganizing anything within reach and almost knocks over a display of cookies. She composes herself just in time for Valentina to come up to the counter again. Valentina smiles and Juliana meets it with a polite closed lipped smile.

“Until next time, hermosa,” Valentina promises softly. She backs up slowly from the counter still watching Juliana closely. The smile on her face brightens, spreading from cheek to cheek. She giggles happily and ducks her head as she turns around.

Juliana can’t believe what is happening. She watches dumbly as Valentina walks out of the café. Her bodyguards are ahead of her as she goes. One holds the door for her as she gets close. Juliana knows this is probably just some dumb game to the actress. Flirt with anyone and everyone. She isn’t going to fall for it.

Valentina looks over her shoulder as she exits the small shop and sends Juliana a delicate wave with the tips of her fingers. It sends a wave of excitement through Juliana betraying to herself that she quite liked the attention. Then Valentina winks and Juliana’s jaw drops.

Fuck.

The rest of her shift passes without much fanfare and because it’s slow she can’t stop thinking about Valentina. She manages to keep her focus long enough to clean the entire shop and close on time still.

She needs to just forget about Valentina Carvajal. It’s not like she will ever see her again anyway.

She doesn’t work at the café the next day. Instead she is working her second job selling lottery tickets in the park with her mom. It’s not glamorous or nearly as fun as working in the café, but it helps them make ends meet. She catches herself wondering what Valentina is doing more than once, picturing her smile and that ridiculous wink over and over again. She chastises herself every time her mind goes there. She will never see Valentina again, she knows that.

The day after that she is working at the café again, but this time she isn’t alone. Sergio, her coworker turned best friend is waiting eagerly for her at the counter when she walks in. His eyes are wide and it looks like he might be bouncing on his toes.

“What is wrong with you?” Juliana questions with a laugh.

“You didn’t tell me you know Valentina Carvajal?!” he practically squeals the words. His voice raises at the end turning his statement into more of a question than she thinks he intended.

The mere mention of Valentina has Juliana’s heart racing in seconds. How could he possibly know? 

“I don’t,” she replies evenly despite her stomach exploding with butterflies.

“Then why was she in here yesterday looking for you?”

“What?!” She can’t believe it. Valentina came back. She came back with the intention of seeing Juliana again. All the cool she was trying to hold onto about this is quickly out the window at the prospect.

“She came in yesterday with two bodyguards with her and she immediately asked for you.” Sergio sounds like a kid talking about a new toy they just got. “I told her you weren’t working and she looked crushed.” Juliana tries not to let that information affect her, but she can’t stop the blush that colors her cheeks.

“Did you tell her I was working today?”

“No, I wasn’t sure if you would want me to,” Sergio explains. Juliana isn’t sure if she wanted him to either. She’s glad he didn’t. Or at least she tells herself she is glad.

“Good.”

“I did tell her your name though,” Sergio admits sheepishly.

Juliana gets an annoyed look on her face. “Why?” she asks exasperatedly.

“Well she came in asking for the girl that was working the day before. I didn’t know that you didn’t want her to know, so I asked if she meant Juliana.” Juliana rolls her eyes but smiles at his obvious guilt. “I knew right away that she didn’t know your name before I told her.”

Juliana’s brow furrows. “How?”

“As soon as I said it, she repeated it in like this dreamy voice like I just gave her the key to some big mystery.” He laughs roughly and Juliana smiles at him. “I think she likes you Juli,” he teases playfully.

“Shut up.” She smacks his arm lightly and shakes her head. She can’t hide the blush anymore though as it brightens at the comment.

“Holy shit,” Sergio clocks the blush like a freaking blood hound. “You like her too,” he’s practically gleeful when he says it. He has never seen Juliana interested in anyone before. Of course, it had to be the most famous actress in Mexico that got her attention.

Juliana ignores him and gestures to the counter. “We have customers.” He turns to see a family approaching the counter and she slips into the back when he isn’t looking.

Sergio tries to bring it up a couple times but Juliana assures him that nothing happened. He begs for the whole story after their lunch rush is done and she finally cracks. She tells him that it was no big deal. Valentina came in said hi to a few fans, ordered an espresso and a concha, and ate her food at the table in the corner with her bodyguards watching over her.

“You didn’t talk to her?” he questions when it seems like Juliana isn’t going to give him any more details. Juliana shakes her head, but it’s obvious she is hiding something. “If you didn’t talk to her, why did she come back looking for you?” he pushes.

“Fine, I talked to her, but it wasn’t even a big deal. She ordered her food, gave me an outrageous tip and then asked if I would join her at her table.”

“Did you join her?” Sergio jumps on that piece of information.

“I was working by myself, I couldn’t,” she lies expertly. Sergio rolls his eyes at her. “She asked if I could another time and I kind of brushed her off.”

Sergio’s eyes bulge. “You brushed off Valentina Carvajal? Probably the most beautiful person to ever walk into this café. Probably the most charming and adorable actress to ever come out of Mexico?”

“I just asked her why someone like her would want to spend time with someone like me, okay?” she rushes to shut him up. “It’s only half a brush off.”

“What did she say?”

“What?”

“When you asked her that, what did she say?”

Juliana scoffs at what Valentina had said. “She said I was beautiful,” she mumbles, but Sergio hears her just fine. He looks ecstatic with this development. “Twice actually,” she tacks on.

“And you still blew her off huh?” Sergio knows her just about better than anyone. She isn’t out to many people, but she has been honest with him from the beginning about liking girls. But he knows that despite liking girls, Juliana has yet to meet someone that actually caught her attention fully. Passing glances at best for the most part.

“It was just a line, Sergio!” she defends in a high-pitched tone. 

“A line that anyone else would have happily eaten up.”

She shakes her head. 

“Even you, miss no-one-is-good-enough, has to admit that she is hot and charming.” He crosses his arms over his chest and tilts his head at her. He is daring her to disagree.

Juliana knows it’s useless to lie. He has already seen her blush twice over Valentina. “She is stunning and she likes to _think_ she is charming.”

“Thank you,” Sergio throws his hands up.

“But,” Juliana cuts through his celebration. “We are from different planets.” She takes a second to think of the best way to explain it. “I brushed her off because she was only asking me to join her to have someone to play with to pass the time.” Sergio scoffs and Juliana starts to get a little frustrated. “Do you really think someone like Valentina Carvajal wants to have a conversation with the person who is serving her coffee?” Sergio looks mildly like he would have to agree with that sentiment.

They are both silent for a while thinking about the question Juliana has posed.

“She did come back looking for you,” Sergio finally says. “Maybe you made more of an impression than you think.”

A few hours pass and it looks like Sergio is finally letting it go. Juliana has sent him a glare any time he looks like he might bring it up again. It seems to have done the trick. He goes on his break and Juliana finally takes a much-needed deep breath. Sergio isn’t wrong. Valentina did come back and was asking about her. She reminds herself not to get her hopes up. Valentina is out of her league and they have nothing in common anyway.

Sergio comes running in from out back with his phone in hand.

“JULI!” He holds up his phone. “MIRA!” He shoves his phone in her face as soon as he’s close enough. “Mira,” he says more calmly.

There is an Instagram picture in front of her. The picture is of her, but she doesn’t recognize it. She looks back at him with a question written all over her face.

“She posted it,” is his only explanation. She looks back at the phone and sees that the picture has been posted by @valcarvajal with a damn blue check next to it and her jaw hits the floor. The picture is slightly blurry. She is standing at the counter she is currently standing at right now. She can tell she wasn’t aware the picture was being taken. She looks to the caption and she isn’t sure if she is flattered or pissed.

“I met this gorgeous girl Juliana the other day. I need you guys to help me out. Does anyone know anything about her? I’m trying to woo here people!!”

Juliana is leaning toward flattered when she notices the comments. The picture has only been posted three hours ago and it already has over 45 thousand likes and nearly 400 comments. Juliana starts to feel a panic set in. Why are this many people interested in this ridiculous quest to woo her?

The first few comments she can see have been liked by Valentina which made them jump to the top. There is one that says – “She works till close every Tuesday at El Huerto Secreto. I see her there after my classes let out. This is her insta @julivaldes” and her Instagram is tagged in the comment. She can’t believe someone she knows was able to find this and give Valentina her info so quickly.

Valentina liked the comment and responded with “Gracias.” Juliana can’t believe it. Most of the other comments are benign. A lot of people are telling Valentina to forget about her and date them instead. Tons of people are calling Juliana beautiful and wishing Valentina luck. Some people are freaking out because they didn’t know Valentina was into women.

“Can you believe it?” Sergio’s question cuts through the fog in her head.

“Someone tagged me in a comment,” Juliana says dumbfounded.

“Go get your phone,” he instructs. They are surprisingly slow for a Sunday evening so she obliges. She hands his phone back to him and rushes into the back to grab hers. 

As soon as she unlocks the screen, she sees that it’s overflowing with notifications. She opens her Instagram and it is blowing up. She has at least a hundred new followers, many of whom have liked nearly all her pictures. There aren’t many on her profile so it isn’t a hard task, but still she’s impressed with their determination.

One new follower in particular stands out:

@valcarvajal has started following you

She also has a few messages on Instagram from people she has never met asking her all sorts of questions that vary in appropriateness.

There is a message that simply says “Hey” with a smiley emoji and it’s from none other than Valentina. Her heart stops when she sees it.

She brings the phone back out to where Sergio is waiting impatiently for her.

“So?”

“I have a hundred new followers.”

“Did she follow you?”

She turns the phone to face him. “And messaged me.” He grabs the phone and the smile on his face is child-like in its joy.

“Juli, you have to message her back.”

She snatches the phone back before he can do anything stupid. He frowns up at her with his lip stuck out dramatically.

“Please? For me?”

“How would it be for you?”

“So that I can live through you, obviously,” he teases. “It’s not every day your friend has a chance to flirt with a gorgeous actress.”

Juliana rolls her eyes. “I’ll think about it.”

She messages her back.

Later that night, after she has closed the café and sent Sergio on his way with a hug and several jokes about not forgetting him when she marries Valentina, she messages her back.

She decides to go right in with something snarky.

“How do you report a stalker?”

Valentina apparently doesn’t mind her twisted sense of humor. Without Juliana even realizing it, they message for hours. It’s midnight by the time she remembers that she has to open the café tomorrow which means being up at six. She shakes her head at herself. For someone who didn’t want anything to do with Valentina Carvajal, she certainly seems to be under her spell.

She tells Valentina she has to go to sleep and sends a quick goodnight. She thinks about all the subjects they managed to cover in the last few hours and can’t help but smile. She didn’t expect to have anything in common with Valentina, but it turns out they have a lot in common. Not to mention Valentina is much deeper than she anticipated. She reads constantly in her downtime, not that the general public cares. And Juliana is starting to feel a crush forming. She knows it’s a terrible idea.

Valentina is rich and famous. She is Mexico’s darling, a rising star in the soap world who just made the nearly impossible leap to films with ease. 

And Juliana… She is working three jobs trying to save up scraps so she can go to school someday. At the rate she is saving money she’ll be back in school at 50. Not to mention she lives with her mother in someone else’s house where they share a bed. She couldn’t be farther from the type of person Valentina would want.

“Goodnight Juliana, until tomorrow.” The message buzzes through and Juliana swears she’s forgotten how to breathe. She tries hard to remind herself of all the reasons this can’t happen.

It doesn’t work.

Monday morning Juliana wakes up to a good morning message from Valentina that keeps a smile plastered on her face for hours. She’s at the café by 6:30 baking things and preparing to open at eight. She isn’t getting nearly enough done though. She is too distracted messaging with Valentina. 

She has to put her phone in the back during the breakfast rush or she knows she will mess up.

After a few hours, the roar of customers quiets and she goes to get her phone. Valentina has sent her phone number and tells Juliana to text her instead. It hits her right away how monumental that is. Someone as famous as Valentina really has to be careful with giving their number out. Juliana could easily leak her number or take advantage of having it, but Valentina is trusting her with it. Her heart races at the idea of texting Valentina. It feels different somehow than messaging her on Instagram, more substantial.

She stares at the number for longer than she should. It’s just a phone number. She should just click it and save it to her phone. She should text Valentina now, but she is struck dumb for a moment. Another message comes through from Valentina that makes her snap out of it.

“It’s just a phone number it won’t bite, Juliana.”

She saves the number to her phone, but decides not to put Valentina’s name on the contact. Instead, she simply puts an emoji of a flower as the contact name. She isn’t sure that having Valentina’s phone number is a good idea. She texts her anyway.

“I don’t know, phone numbers are unpredictable sometimes.”

Tuesday, she starts her shift at the café midday and Valentina is already there waiting for her. Her stomach swoops wildly when she sees her. Butterflies erupt making her heart stutter. Then she really looks at the scene in front of her.

There are people fawning over Valentina, of course. Her bodyguards are close by but giving her space, watching every interaction. It reminds Juliana how different their lives are. She can’t believe she let herself forget. Valentina just became another person in the span of one day. Admittedly, she quickly became Juliana’s favorite person that fast too. But Val isn’t just some other person. She is rich and famous and Juliana needs to get a grip.

Valentina’s eyes lock onto hers as she moves further into the shop and she smiles brightly. Juliana smiles back but it isn’t as full. It’s cautious and edged with worry. Valentina looks like she is going to come over and say hi but the people talking to her ask for a picture and she is pulled back in.

It gives Juliana the opening she needs to put some distant between them. She goes to the back of the shop to put her bag down and tries to catch her breath for a second. How is it that you can be so shocked by someone’s beauty even when you see their picture posted all over town on ads? She hasn’t seen Valentina in person in a few days and that gorgeous smile nearly made her heart stop for good.

She comes back out to the front and Sergio looks at her like she is an idiot.

“Don’t,” she warns him and he takes the hint. He goes to help some people at the counter and Juliana looks out across the café. The people that were talking to Valentina are still standing next to her, but she is sitting down now. She appears to be writing something and Juliana realizes it’s an autograph.

She has been texting for two days with a person that people ask for autographs from. What is her life right now?

She gets to work to distract herself. She cleans the counters and goes to collect some trash that’s been left behind on a few tables. Valentina takes advantage of her being out from behind the counter.

“Hola,” she says happily but quietly near Juliana’s ear. Juliana turns to look at her and Valentina is much closer than she expected her to be. It makes her breath catch annoyingly.

“Hi,” she responds weakly.

Valentina’s brow furrows. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, just busy,” Juliana supplies quickly as she lifts the trash and dishes in her hands. She walks away and continues cleaning.

Valentina is not giving up though. “What’s changed since yesterday?” she challenges as she follows closely behind Juliana.

Juliana stops cleaning and turns to face her. “Nothing,” she says quickly. She doesn’t have a good answer to that question. Valentina looks sad and it physically hurts Juliana. “I just remembered that it’s not as simple as we are letting ourselves pretend it is.”

Valentina’s eyes spark with defiance. She slides her hands into her back pockets and leans into Juliana’s space further. Juliana can’t stop her eyes from scanning up and down Val’s body. Her eyes come back up just in time to see Val bite her lip. It’s devastating.

“Why are you so reluctant to make a new friend?” Valentina asks in a tone that is rough and deep.

“A friend, huh?” Juliana’s response is instant.

“If that’s all you can offer, I will happily accept.”

Juliana tries not to be impressed but it’s not possible. Valentina is quick and witty and she pushes back against Juliana’s resistance in all the right ways. She is willing to be Juliana’s friend when it’s obvious that she would rather have more. She is willing to do that just to have Juliana in her life.

“We lead very different lives, Valentina,” she finally gives a more concrete reason. She holds eye contact with Valentina for a heated moment. She is going to say more. She is going to explain herself a little bit, but Sergio interrupts them.

“Juli,” he calls to her quietly. She drags her eyes from Valentina’s with some effort. He nods toward the queue that is starting to build at the counter. She has to get back to helping him.

“I have to…” she trails off not meeting Val’s eyes this time.

“Go. I’ll be waiting when you’re done.” She looks up at that and Valentina’s smile is lopsided and closer to a smirk than a smile. She tilts her head adorably and quirks a brow at Juliana daring her to challenge the statement. When Juliana says nothing, she goes back to her table.

Juliana scoffs, but she shakes it off and gets back to work.

They are busier than usual for a Tuesday. They usual have an early rush and then a slow afternoon until the late classes let out of the nearby university in the evening. Today though there is a steady stream of customers the whole day. It’s never overwhelming, but certainly keeps them moving.

At some point, Juliana realizes that more people are coming in because they know that Valentina is here. Either they saw the comments on the picture that Val posted of Juliana and guessed that Valentina would be here on her wooing quest, or there’s some way people are sharing her location with one another.

She sees Valentina take a few pictures with fans. Some people are even asking her to do snapchats and Instagram stories with her and she happily obliges. She tells people that she is hanging out at El Huerto Secreto the whole day and to come see her. She is like a walking advertisement.

The café stays busy the whole day thanks to Valentina’s presence. People order food and drinks and say hi to Val. It’s like an impromptu meet and greet and Juliana is impressed with Valentina who keeps a smile on her face the whole day. She talks to everyone that stops by her table. She takes picture after picture and signs whatever is handed to her. She really is remarkable.

Later in the evening, Juliana’s frequent customer from the university comes in. She is the girl that posted the comment with Juliana’s Instagram tagged in it.

“So, I see she took my advice,” Nora says with a smile. Juliana looks up at her and tries not to laugh.

“She certainly did,” she replies and shakes her head. They both look over Nora’s shoulder at Valentina. She glances back at them as she continues her conversation with a handsome guy. He seems much more interested in the conversation than she is.

“I’m sorry if I over-stepped. I thought it would be fun to see Valentina try to flirt with you. I didn’t realize until after I posted the comment that you might not want her to know your Instagram or your schedule.” Nora looks appropriately apologetic and Juliana decides to cut her some slack. She was a little taken aback at first, but so far everything has worked out fine.

“It’s okay, she already knew I worked her. She probably would have just shown up everyday until she caught me if you didn’t tell her I work close on Tuesdays.” She puts in Nora’s usual order and reaches for her credit card. Something Nora said pops back into her mind though. “What do you mean see Valentina try to flirt with me?”

Nora laughs as Juliana hands the card back. “I have watched about fifty people try to flirt with you and you have shut every single one of them down. I wanted to see if you would shut her down too.”

“There is no way fifty people have tried to flirt with me,” Juliana denies.

“Yeah you’re right,” Nora agrees. “I’m sure it’s a lot more than that considering I’m only ever here on Tuesday.”

Juliana scoffs and rolls her eyes. “Go sit down,” she says playfully. “I will bring you your order in a second.”

Nora smiles and mutters a thanks before she walks over to Valentina instead of a table. Juliana watches them talk like they are old friends. Nora doesn’t ask for a picture or an autograph, but Valentina seems to be asking her all kinds of questions. They laugh and smile leaning toward one another like they’ve talked a million times and Juliana feels a twinge in her gut.

She looks away and gets Nora’s order ready. By the time she turns back, Nora is sitting by herself getting her laptop out and Valentina is alone for the first time in what seems like hours.

She brings a vanilla latte and a cookie to Nora’s table and sets them down. She starts to walk away but Nora’s voice stops her.

“I don’t know what you did, but she’s smitten already.” 

Juliana is dumbfounded. She looks over her shoulder at Valentina who’s glancing up at her occasionally, trying to be nonchalant. 

“What makes you say that?" she asks Nora, looking back at her for the answer.

“I just went over to say hi and told her that I was the person that tagged your Instagram in a comment,” she pauses to sip her drink again. She smiles before she continues, “and she immediately started asking all kinds of questions about you. She was practically gushing Juliana.”

“Well what did you tell her?”

“I told you that I've seen about a million people flirt with you and I've never seen you look effected by any of it..." she responds coolly. Juliana glances at Val again. "Until today," Nora tacks on and Juliana snaps her attention back to her friend.

"You did not say that."

"I did," she confirms. "Because it’s true," she adds with a giggle. "Look at you." She gestures to Juliana. "You can't stop looking back at her. Your cheeks are flushed, your smile shy. I've never seen you like this." She takes a sip of her drink and logs in to her computer. "It’s cute," she says finally.

"Shut up," Juliana says with an even deeper blush on her cheeks. 

Nora laughs loudly. "I think you should go for it."

"I'm walking away now," Juliana sing songs as she does just that. Her eyes seem to find Valentina’s without her permission. Valentina smiles sweetly at her and she matches it briefly before looking away.

The café stays busy until just before closing and Valentina waits patiently the whole time. She has stayed busy most of that time as well. If she wasn’t talking to fans, she pulled out a book that Juliana didn’t recognize and was consumed with reading.

El Huerto Secreto closes at nine and everyone but Valentina clears out shortly before that. Juliana watches as Valentina stands up and coaxes her bodyguards closer. They lean in toward her while she whispers to them quietly. Juliana pretends not to be paying attention. She wipes down the counters and loads the dishes in the dishwasher. She goes into the supply closet to get a mop and when she comes back the guards are gone. Valentina is sitting on a table waiting for her.

“I hope you don’t mind if I hang out while you clean?” Valentina calls out to her from across the small shop.

“Where did your posse go?” 

“I sent them home.”

She didn’t expect that. She thought maybe Valentina asked them to wait outside or something, but she sent them home. They are completely alone for the first time ever and it does something to Juliana.

“They haven’t eaten in hours because of their dumb code. I didn’t want them to pass out,” Valentina says almost flippantly. Juliana can see that she is actually worried about them though. “Besides,” she starts before her voice changes, “I trust you,” she says in a deep reverent tone.

Juliana finds herself staring. The weight of those words not lost on her. She has only known Valentina for a couple of days and already she feels safe to be alone with her. She believes Valentina when she says she trusts her, because she already trusts Valentina too.

Val takes advantage of her silence. “What did you mean earlier when you said we lead very different lives?”

Juliana tries not to scoff but it slips out anyway. She pulls the mop and bucket to the center of the shop before going to lock the door. She would normally ask Valentina to leave before she locked it, but she doesn’t think Valentina will go even if she asks her to.

“If you don’t know, I’m not sure I can explain it,” Juliana mumbles. She walks back past Valentina on her way to start mopping. She doesn’t make it there. Val reaches out and grabs her hand as she passes. She pulls Juliana to face her. They are suddenly closer than they have ever been, Juliana standing nearly between Val’s legs.

“I know we are different, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be friends, right?” Valentina’s eyes are searching Juliana’s. The moment is charged and Juliana feels herself leaning into Val’s magnetism. It’s nearly impossible to resist Valentina. Valentina’s eyes drop to Juliana’s lips and she has to move.

She turns and starts getting to work on putting all the chairs up on the tables so she can mop. Valentina starts helping without her even asking.

“I work three jobs,” Juliana starts out of nowhere. She knows Valentina is listening even as they both keep working around the shop. “I work here, I sell lottery tickets on my days off, and I design and sell clothes on Etsy in my down time.” Once all the chairs are put up, she starts to mop. Valentina gets out of the way by sitting on the counter near the registers.

“I live in a rented room with that I share with my mom. Even working those three jobs and her working two, we barely make ends meet.” She looks up at Valentina and sees the pity she expected, but it doesn’t bother her as much as usual. “You probably never worry about money, do you?”

Val looks embarrassed almost. “No,” she admits shyly. Juliana keeps cleaning, looking away from Valentina as she does. “Even before I got my break in the industry, my father was wealthy. That’s why I felt safe taking the leap into acting. Even if it didn’t work, I’d still be fine.”

“I have never had that kind of security in my life. We have always struggled, but it got worse when my father died.”

“Your father died?” Valentina jumps in sounding apologetic. Juliana looks up at her and nods softly. “When?”

“About six months ago,” she answers quietly. 

“My father died too,” Valentina admits roughly. “A little more than six months ago. I miss him so much,” she whispers.

Juliana walks over to her then. She puts her hand on Val’s knee. “I’m so sorry, Valentina. I didn’t know.”

“Not many people do. My sister did a good job of keeping it away from the press. She didn’t want it to distract from my film debut.” She has tears in her eyes as she shakes her head. “I didn’t care about distracting from it, I just wanted to grieve.”

“Then you should,” Juliana murmurs.

“It’s not that simple.”

“Nothing ever is,” she squeezes Val’s knee firmly before backing up again to finish cleaning the floor.

They are silent for a few minutes as Valentina gets her tears under control. She calmly watches Juliana clean taking solace in being allowed to cry.

“Do you miss your dad?” she asks when Juliana goes to put the mop away.

“No,” Juliana says almost too quickly. Val’s eyes widen. “He wasn’t a good man. We are better off without him honestly.”

“It still must be hard sometimes.”

Juliana doesn’t like talking about her father. She doesn’t like people knowing what he was. She doesn’t like having to lie about it either. So instead, she changes the subject.

“When I said we lead different lives, I wasn’t exaggerating,” she starts gently. She doesn’t want to upset Valentina further, but she knows she can’t let this get out of hand. “I barely have time for myself when I’m not working, let alone time for a new friend right now.” She puts the mop away and comes back to stand near Valentina who is still perched on the counter. “You must be busy too,” she tries to soften the blow.

“Well actually,” Valentina says with a smirk forming on her lips. “I’m not busy right now.”

Juliana can’t help but to laugh softly. 

“And I don’t think you’re busy right now…” she trails off waiting for Juliana to confirm.

“As a matter of fact, I’m free.” The smile on Juliana’s face is shy but it’s there.

Valentina jumps down from the counter and takes Juliana’s hand. She leads her to a table with a booth seat so they don’t have to take any chairs back down.

“Sit with me,” she says in a soft voice. It’s half statement half question. She slides into the booth as far as she can leaving space for Juliana to join her. Juliana looks unsure. “Seriously, I just want to talk to you, Juliana.”

It’s the first time Valentina has said her name in person and it sends a wave of excitement through her body.

“Fine,” Juliana finally concedes.

They sit together, mere inches apart, for an hour. It’s dark outside and the streets have become quiet with the late hour. The lights in most of the café are off leaving them secluded in their own secret world. A secret garden.

They talk about everything and nothing. Juliana teases Valentina for reading a book about death being a portal. She shows Valentina pictures of the clothes she makes in her spare time. Val complains about the security guards she’s been saddled with since her dad’s death. She gushes about her father for a long time and Juliana feels deeply saddened that Valentina lost someone so important to her. She explains why she didn’t like her father and Valentina doesn’t seem bothered when Juliana says he was a sicario. In fact, she seems impressed and weirdly fascinated.

They get so lost in conversation that Juliana loses track of the time. Her phone starts ringing interrupting their conversation. It’s her mother.

“Hang on,” she says to Valentina who nods. “Hola mama,” Juliana answers the phone. Her mother practically screeches over the line asking all kinds of questions about where she is and why she isn’t home yet. It’s obvious that she is yelling loud enough for Valentina to hear when she has to stifle a laugh.

"Aye Lupe, tranquila!" Juliana tries to quiet her mother down. "I lost track of time. Lo siento." Her mom asks where she is.

She looks up at Valentina. The other girl has a knowing smile on her face. She can still hear every word apparently.

"I'm with a friend," she explains and Valentina actually _blushes_. She ducks her head so Juliana only sees it for a moment but there is no missing the beautiful pink that colors her cheeks. "We are at the café still."

Valentina looks back up and the blush has faded slightly. "Do you need to go?" She whispers the question. Juliana nods and there is a small frown on her face as she does. "Okay."

Juliana gets up and Val follows. She walks around the shop making sure everything is done and all the lights are out. Val pulls her phone out presumably to call for a ride. Juliana is still getting lectured the whole time about worrying her mother and Valentina waits patiently for her to finish up.

"Alright mama, I'm leaving now. I'll be home soon." She hangs up as she walks up to Val who is waiting by the door.

They look at one another shyly for a few moments. Juliana’s hand rests on the door as she looks into Valentina’s gorgeous eyes.

"I hate to admit it, but I had fun." Val scoffs and rolls her eyes playfully.

"I knew you would," Val teases her.

"Thank you," Juliana’s voice has dropped an octave. The tone fills the air with tension instantly.

"Thank you for staying with me. I'm glad I didn't bore you." Valentina attempts to lighten the mood but Juliana feels daring.

"I don't think that’s possible honestly," she says reverently. Her eyes lock onto Val’s. They stare for several heated moments before a car pulls up outside. Its Valentina’s ride.

"That was fast."

"They never stray far. Per my sister’s instructions." Valentina’s fingers fidget as she explains. She clearly doesn't want to leave yet. Juliana thinks maybe she is worried this will be the last time they get to do this. She was so reluctant to spend time alone with Val that maybe the other girl doesn't think it will happen again.

"I'll text you when I get home. Maybe you can come by the shop when I'm working tomorrow?"

Val lights up at the suggestion. "I have a meeting with producers at 4, but I can come after."

"Perfecto,” Juliana says around a shy smile. Her cheeks are tinged pink as she tilts her head to the side.

Juliana opens the door for them, gesturing for Valentina to go first. Valentina walks outside and turns to wait for Juliana. Juliana locks the door behind them and as she turns, she is pulled into a tight hug. She relishes the contact. She doesn't usually like hugs but this... this is different.

They separate, standing a few inches apart unsure what to do with themselves. Valentina pulls herself together first and leans in. She places a gentle kiss on Juliana’s cheek, lingering longer than what would be considered friendly. Juliana’s eyes fall shut without her realizing.

“Goodnight Juliana,” she whispers into Juliana’s ear. Goosebumps erupt all over Juliana’s skin.

Juliana opens her eyes and Val is already getting in the car. “Goodnight,” she breathes. Her hand goes to her cheek as the car drives away. Her heart is racing and her cheek is still tingling where Valentina’s lips touched her. She’s never felt this way about anyone before.

Valentina Carvajal. It had to be Valentina Carvajal?

Valentina comes to see Juliana at work every day for the rest of that week. She stops in when she has time, making it work around meetings and press engagements. She even joins Juliana in the park for a while on the day she is selling lottery tickets there.

Juliana is pleasantly surprised at how much she enjoys Valentina’s company. She was worried that their first time being alone together was a fluke. That they were both excited to be getting some alone time and had plenty of things to talk about since it was all so new. But they never run out of things to talk about and the excitement is always present, buzzing between them like a current that can’t be switched off.

They convince her bodyguards to give them some space most days. They stand outside the café instead of in the corner. When they are strolling through the park, the men lag behind them allowing them to talk freely. They even make a break for it at one point and get an hour of complete freedom before they are found again. They use it wisely, trying on sunglasses at a kiosk, jumping into a dance class going on in the park, and Juliana teaching Valentina how to dance when she is too shy to do it with the class.

It feels more like a date than any real date she’s ever been on. Valentina has to leave shortly after her bodyguards find them again. She has to go to a wardrobe fitting for the movie she is about to start filming, but she promises to text Juliana as soon as she can. She kisses Juliana’s cheek quickly before disappearing with her entourage.

Sunday she is working the whole day at the café with Sergio. He is taking great pleasure in asking her a million questions about Valentina. 

They had a busy morning, but the customers have slowly cleared out and they are having a calmer afternoon. Juliana almost wishes they were busier so they wouldn’t have time to talk about it.

“Has she kissed you yet?” he asks eagerly. His face is that of a giddy teenager instead of a full-grown man.

Juliana immediately remembers the now many times that Valentina has kissed her on the cheek. She dips her head breaking eye contact with Sergio. Her cheeks must be flushed because when she looks back up at him his face is positively gleeful.

“Dios mio! She has,” he says excitedly.

“No, she hasn’t,” Juliana interrupts quickly before he gets on a roll.

“You’re lying. I can tell by your face that your lying.”

“Okay, okay.” She holds up her hands trying to calm him down. “She has kissed me but only on the cheek a few times.”

He still looks like he could die of happiness. “Why hasn't she kissed you for real?” he asks with a furrowed brow.

She thinks about it for a second. “Well, I basically told her I didn't even wanna be friends with her, so I think she might be worried that I'm not interested.”

“Why don't you kiss her then?” he asks like it’s the simplest thing in the world. “Show her you like her.”

"I don't know." She isn't sure why she hasn't kissed Val yet. Maybe because she still thinks somewhere in the back of her mind that this is a bad idea. That there's no way a famous, up and coming actress could possibly want to be with someone like her. And even if it's obvious that Valentina does like her, who's to say it will last if they go there. Isn't it better to have a beautiful friendship than have a romance that blows up in your face?

She feels deeply connected to Valentina already and its only been a few days. They have a lot in common and the things that are different about them only serve to balance their relationship. Valentina is more carefree while Juliana is cautious. Valentina always has fun things to do and to try while Juliana is more than willing to tag along. She loves spending time with Valentina but she still feels held back by something.

There's the fact that as soon as anything happens between them it will probably show up in magazines and articles all over Mexico. She's not sure she's ready for that kind of exposure on something so new. She's not sure she would ever be ready for that.

"I mean, she's Valentina Carvajal.” She finally answers his question. “Am I really just gonna kiss her out of the blue?"

Sergio doesn't get a chance to answer as a group of women come into the cafe. They both move to the counter ready to help them. 

After they make a few drinks and serve the ladies their sugar fix for the afternoon, Sergio finally has an answer.

"Really though Juliana, what have you got to lose?"

The question haunts her until Valentina herself walks through the door a few hours later. Then suddenly she knows exactly what she has to lose. She wonders if the risk is worth it. She watches a smile spread across Valentina’s face as soon as they make eye contact. She’s pretty sure the risk is worth it.

“Hi,” Valentina says happily when she reaches the counter.

“Hi,” Juliana responds with a matching smile. Her heart is fluttering in her chest. She never expected to feel this way when she met Valentina a little over a week ago.

“Hi,” Sergio chimes in, breaking the tension. Valentina’s eyes snap to him quickly as if she’s been caught doing something she shouldn’t. Juliana just rolls her eyes at him but the smile never leaves her face.

“Hola Sergio,” Valentina replies politely. 

“She knows my name,” he stage-whispers to Juliana. She can’t help but laugh at him then.

“Of course, I know your name. You’re Juli’s best friend,” Valentina says in explanation. The simplicity of it makes Juliana’s heart clench. Sergio is important to Juliana, so he is worth remembering to Valentina.

“Awe,” Sergio hums. “You told her I’m your best friend?”

“Ignore him,” Juliana says to Valentina as she waves him off playfully. “What are you having?”

“Oh, I actually can’t stay,” Valentina answers and her voice is suddenly shy. “I just came in to…” she trails off looking briefly at Sergio then back to Juliana. “Could I steal you for a few minutes?” She looks completely unsure about asking.

Juliana smiles reassuringly. She looks at Sergio. “Are you okay if I take a break?”

“Yeah, go head,” he answers easily. It’s not like their busy, but she just wanted to make sure. “Take your time,” he adds suggestively.

Juliana looks back at Val. She looks nervous. Juliana has never seen her look nervous before.

“Why don’t we go for a quick walk?” she offers quickly gesturing out the front of the shop.

“Yeah, that would be great,” Valentina agrees looking a little more confident.

“Let me just,” Juliana gestures to her apron and then the back of the store.

“Yeah,” Val says softly waving for Juliana to go. She steps to the side so she isn’t blocking anyone from the counter and waits. Juliana takes off her apron and quickly grabs her phone from the back. She comes walking back out and gets Valentina’s attention.

“You ready?” she asks sweetly. Val nods and she leads Juliana out of the café.

They walk for a few minutes in silence. Juliana is waiting patiently for Valentina to say something, anything really. Valentina is being shy and her hands are fidgeting. Juliana has never seen her act so unsure. She finally decides to break the silence.

"Val," she says with a slight laugh. "I only get 15 minutes for my break." She’s trying to coax Val into talking.

"Right, sorry." She continues to play nervously with her fingers as she finally looks at Juliana. "So, I'm leaving today," she starts slowly.

That is definitely not what Juliana expected. "Oh."

"It's only for a few days," she quickly adds. "I'm going to scout locations with a producer for my next film. He likes my ideas and wants my opinion on some places. I'll be back on Friday."

Juliana knows that she shouldn't be sad. It’s only a few days and they will probably text while Val is away, but she feels a knot in her stomach at not getting to see her.

"I just wanted to see you one more time before I left. But then I was wondering if that was too much like something a girlfriend would do."

Juliana's heart pounds at the word girlfriend.

"Because I know that I'm not your girlfriend and I know you said you don't have time..."

Juliana cuts her off. "Val!" Val's eyes spring to meet hers. "I'm glad you came to see me before you left."

The smile she is met with is absolutely stunning. In that moment she realizes that Valentina is worth every risk there is to take. If she gets to enjoy this smile for even just one day more, she would do just about anything.

She reaches out and takes Val’s hand. Valentina’s eyes are fixed on the action. Their fingers interlace easily and Juliana is sure she is going to have a heart attack. They only have a few minutes left before she has to go back to work and she doesn’t want to waste it. She pulls Valentina with her so they can keep walking.

“Where are you going?” Juliana asks to try and lighten the mood.

“If I told you, I’d have to kill you,” Valentina teases and they both laugh loudly.

They walk for a few more minutes before turning back toward the café. Their hands stay linked the entire time and Juliana is weirdly giddy. Holding hands is such a simple thing, but it makes her so happy.

They get close to the café and still have another minute before Juliana has to go back inside. Val pulls her to a stop just out of sight of the windows into the shop.

“I’ll text you when I’ve got time, okay?”

“Okay,” Juliana nods. Her eyes drop to their interlocked hands and she bites her lip to stop a ridiculous grin from taking over her face. She looks up and Val is watching her with a soft look in her eyes.

“You know this is terrible timing,” she says in almost a whining voice. Juliana notices that her eyes are locked onto the lip that is pulled between her teeth. It sends a wave of something dangerous through Juliana’s belly.

“What do you mean?” Juliana questions.

“I’ve even been waiting for this trip for weeks. I’m excited to go see the locations and I’m glad that a producer cares enough about my opinion to take me for scouting, but now I don’t really want to go.” She takes a step closer to Juliana. “I’d rather spend all my free time with you,” she admits quietly.

Juliana feels her cheeks burning. “Don’t worry,” she starts and her tone is teasing. “I’ll be waiting when you get back.”

They lock eyes for a few intense seconds before Juliana decides to go for it. She steps forward, closing the distance between them. Valentina is watching her intently as she moves closer. She pushes up onto her toes just slightly and presses her lips into Val’s. Her eyes fall shut and the feeling of Valentina’s lips on hers is electric. 

Valentina meets her enthusiastically. She kisses Juliana back, but it’s quickly interrupted by a smile spreading across the actress’s face.

“I thought you didn’t have time for this?” she teases. She rests her forehead on Juliana’s and their faces are still so close that Juliana can feel Val’s breath softly against her cheeks.

She laughs roughly having still not caught her breath after the kiss. “And I thought you were only trying to make a friend?” she teases right back.

“We both know you never believed that.”

She shrugs halfheartedly before surging forward and kissing Valentina again. Val’s hands go to her cheeks pulling them even closer together. Her hands fall to Val’s hips naturally and she pulls their bodies flush. A soft hum escapes from somewhere in Val’s throat and it makes Juliana’s body tingle.

Valentina’s tongue swipes across her bottom lip and she doesn’t hesitate to open her mouth. Their tongues meet and Juliana has never felt like this before. She never wants to stop kissing Valentina.

Then suddenly she remembers that they are outside on a crowded street right near where she works. She breaks the kiss but doesn’t pull back very far.

Valentina is watching her with curious eyes trying to hide her smile. Her right hand goes to wipe the edge of her lips while her left one slides into Juliana’s hair.

“Sorry,” Juliana says breathlessly. “I just realized that my break is definitely over by now.”

Val’s face goes a little red. She ducks her head breaking their eye contact. “Yeah, good point,” she responds with a smile on her face. “You should probably…” She tries to take a small step away from Juliana, but she tightens her hold on Val’s hips stopping the movement. Valentina looks at her with a question on her face.

She leans in and kisses her again firmly. It only lasts a second, but it’s amazing. She squeezes Val’s hips playfully before stepping away. Val watches her as she walks backward toward the café’s entrance.

“I’ll see you when you get back,” she swears.

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

Sergio doesn’t stop talking about it for days. He saw them kiss outside the café and nearly dropped a drink on a customer. He tells Juliana how proud he is of her and teases her flushed cheeks every chance he gets.

Val leaves, but she texts Juliana only minutes after she goes. They text whenever they are both free non-stop. Valentina admits that she is having trouble focusing on anything the producers want to talk to her about. She says she can’t stop thinking about Juliana and that kiss. Juliana isn’t having any luck either. She’s clumsy and distracted at work the entire rest of that day, not to mention Monday she is daydreaming nearly the whole time. It’s very distracting. A side-effect she didn’t even consider happening. She guesses when you kiss someone as dreamy as Valentina Carvajal, you’re bound to think about it for days on end.

She comes in on Tuesday still beaming. Sergio smiles at her knowingly.

“You look happy,” he tells her as soon as she comes in from the back of the shop. She is tying the apron around her waist and looks up at him.

“I am,” she answers calmly with a smile to match.

“Are you officially girlfriends now?” he asks conspiratorially.

She is slightly caught off guard by the question. It makes sense though. It’s obvious that they like each other. They spend all of their free time either together or texting each other. The next logical step is to be girlfriends.

A loud alarm accompanied with imaginary red flashing lights goes off in her head.

If she starts dating Valentina the whole of Mexico is going to know in a matter of days. She should probably tell her mom that she is gay before that happens.

“No, we are not girlfriends,” she sounds harsher than she means to.

“Whoa, okay. I thought kissing a beautiful girl might make you relax a little.” He starts wiping down the counters. “I was wrong.”

“Sorry,” she grumbles. “I just realized that if I start dating Val, everyone is gonna know about it.” He nods. “I should probably come out to my mom before she reads it in a magazine or something.”

“You might wanna put a rush on that,” he says cryptically.

“What do you mean?”

He looks at her like she must be joking. Without a word he goes into the back and returns a few seconds later with his phone in his hand.

“You’re probably the only person that hasn’t seen this yet,” he grumbles under his breath. “Too busy texting I’m sure.”

He turns the phone to face her just like he did when he was showing her Val’s Instagram post about her. This time it’s open to an article on BuzzfeedMX.

“Who Is Juliana Valdes?” is the title of the article. She snatches the phone from Sergio’s hand to look at it more closely. She can’t believe this. She knew people would be paying attention to Valentina’s love life, but she thought they would have more time flying under the radar.

She is scanning through the article when Sergio starts talking again. “It mentions her post on Instagram about you.”

She reads the part he is talking about out loud.

“The actress posted this to her Instagram Sunday. She asked for help wooing the mysterious brunette. Comments told Valentina that she could find Miss Juliana Valdes at her place of employment, a small café called El Huerto Secreto, all day Tuesday.” She scrolls past the inlaid picture from Valentina’s Instagram to the rest of the story.

“Valentina apparently took her fan’s advice.” She scoffs loudly and looks up to Sergio. He is watching her closely with slightly worried eyes.

“It gets worse.”

She looks back at the article. There are more pictures further down. “Our photographers caught up with her Tuesday night just in time to catch her planting a cute kiss to Juliana’s cheek.” She continues reading out loud. She scrolls down to a picture of her and Val saying goodbye on Tuesday night. There are two pictures, one of them hugging and the other perfectly time to catch Valentina kissing her cheek quickly.

“Are they serious?” she asks petulantly. “She kissed my cheek. Do they really care?”

“I think they might not have cared about that if it was all they caught her doing,” Sergio explains pointing at the phone for her to keep reading.

She scrolls past the pictures. She reads to herself this time instead of out loud.

Fans were going crazy trying to figure out – Who is Juliana Valdes? And, why is Valentina suddenly spending all this time with her? 

So, BuzzfeedMX took on the case. Juliana Valdes is hard to find though. Her Instagram is practically empty. We can’t find any other social media pages for her. Rumor has it she moved to the city not long ago and all we know is that she works at a café downtown.

Not very helpful is it?

Good news though, Valentina seems to know plenty about our mystery woman. Sunday evening the telenovela star was spotted outside Juliana’s work with the brunette. They were walking hand-in-hand and looked very happy.

There is another picture of the two of them. It was taken down the street from the café. Valentina is looking at Juliana like she hung the moon. Their hands are linked between them and Juliana is ducking her head shyly with a smile on her face.

Valentina left town Sunday to scout locations for an upcoming film, according to sources close to the actress. We caught the couple kissing before she left. 

One final picture is tacked on toward the end of the article. They are kissing, but it’s surprisingly innocent. She remembers it being much less innocent to her. The fire that was roaring in her belly doesn’t show through the lens of the camera, thank goodness. Valentina is holding her face softly; her hands holding tightly to Val’s hips. They are smiling into a closed-mouth kiss. It’s a good picture. Seeing a picture of herself kissing Valentina sends her heart racing.

We don’t know where this girl came from, but it looks like Valentina might want to keep her around. Now we just need a couple name. Juliantina anyone?

She hands the phone back to Sergio with a scowl on her face.

“Sorry, Juli. I know this isn’t what you wanted to happen,” he says genuinely concerned for his friend. He takes his phone and brings it into the back again. Juliana looks out over the people in the café. How many of them have read this article? Sergio comes back and puts a hand on her back comfortingly.

“This is how it will always be with Val isn’t it?” she questions sounding defeated.

“I don’t know, maybe,” he sounds like he doesn’t want to admit it, but she can tell that he thinks so too.

“Every time we go out together. Every kiss. Every Fight. Anytime we have good news or bad, it’s going to be plastered across every news outlet in Mexico.”

“I don’t think that’s necessarily true, Juli.”

“We aren’t even together yet and it’s already happening, Sergio.” The anger in her voice is more cutting than she means for it to be. He looks taken aback by her reaction.

“Listen,” he starts in a calming placating tone. He pulls her into a brief hug. “She has been dealing with the attention for years, I’m sure she knows a few tricks by now,” he says as they step apart. “You will learn how to avoid the attention if you want to.”

She nods a little distractedly. She is thinking about Valentina. She has never been one to shy away from the lime light. She was inviting people to come hang out with her when she was in the café last week. She doesn’t seem to mind the attention she is given. But then she remembers how sad she was that she couldn’t openly mourn her father. Valentina is more effected by the attention than she lets on. She wears it well. Juliana isn’t sure she could adapt so well.

“What if I don’t want to get used to it? What if I don’t want to learn how to avoid attention?”

Sergio looks sad. “You can either have a life outside the limelight or you can have Valentina. You can’t have both.”

Sergio let’s her stew for the rest of the day. She is lost in thought most of the day. Thinking about what she should do. Not to mention that she is dreading going home. She is going to have to come out to her mom tonight. If she doesn’t, her mom is definitely going to see that article sometime soon. Someone who knows them will see it and show Lupe before she gets the chance.

Sergio sends her off that night with a hug and a whispered good luck. She has a few texts from Valentina waiting for her when she grabs her phone from the back, but she doesn’t answer them right away. She needs to think. She needs a clear head and Val is just too distracting.

She gets home and her mom can tell immediately that something is off with her.

“What’s wrong, Juli?” she asks gently. She is sitting on their shared bed folding some clothes she has just washed.

Juliana doesn’t even know where to begin. She has been keeping this part of herself hidden from her mom for so long that she isn’t sure she knows how to confide in her about it.

Then her mom says something that floors her.

“Does this have anything to do with Valentina Carvajal?”

She’s too late. Her mom already saw the article. She is shocked by the blasé tone though. She hasn’t come out to her mom yet, but here she is casually mentioning someone that everyone thinks she has a thing with. Before she gets a chance to pull herself together, Lupe is talking again.

“I saw this,” she starts explaining. She pulls up the BuzzfeedMX article on her phone.

“Mom, I can explain,” Juliana is quick to say. She isn’t even sure what she is going to say, but she has to come up with something obviously.

But her mom doesn’t seem mad. She doesn’t even seem bothered at all. “You didn’t tell me you know Valentina Carvajal!” she squeals. She playfully hits Juliana’s arm with a wide smile on her face.

“Well, I’ve only known her for like a week.”

“You didn’t go on a date?”

Juliana is caught off guard by her mother’s nonchalance toward the situation. She thought for sure her mother would not be okay with her being gay.

“A date?” is all she manages to mumble out.

Her mom is starting to get impatient. “JULI! Was this a date?” she asks while pointing to the picture of them walking down the street holding hands.

“No ma,” she is quicker to answer now that Lupe is raising her voice in excitement. “She just came by the café to say bye to me and we went for a walk on my break.”

“Do you like her?”

She thinks about how best to say how she feels about Valentina. She likes her. She definitely likes her, but she is still weary of the situation. Especially after the article came out about them. She was already worried that they were too different before she realized that their entire relationship will be under the watchful eyes of the press. She can’t lie about how she feels though.

“I do like her. A lot actually,” she admits quietly.

“Awe, Juli,” her mom coos sweetly. She pulls her into a hug. “I’m happy for you, mi niña.”

“She’s different than I expected her to be mama. She is so smart and witty. We talk about such deep topics especially when she is sad. She is so down to earth which I didn’t expect because she is so rich that she really doesn’t need to be. Not to mention that she is so nice to everyone.”

“She sounds amazing, Juli,” her mom says sincerely.

“But I don’t think we can be together, ma.”

“Why? Does she not want to be with you?”

“I mean I think she does, but we are just too different,” she explains in a defeated tone. Her mom doesn’t look convinced. “She literally is out scouting locations for her next movie, ma. She probably climbed onto a private jet and flew halfway across the world with a bunch of other rich people. I cleaned a public toilet today.” Her mom at least has the decency to chuckle. “It’s like she is from a different world. I won’t be able to keep up.”

“Juli,” her mom hums her name. “Don’t be so cynical, mi niña,” she chastises. She pulls Juliana into her side and strokes her fingers through Juliana’s hair. “She obviously really likes you. She has come to see you more than once at work. Just try to calm down and have fun. If it works then you’ll both be happy and if it doesn’t, at least you tried.”

Juliana tries to take her mother’s advice. She decides to just go with the flow as best she can. She texts Valentina back finally and the actress is noticeably happy to hear from her. She tells Juliana how much she misses her and Juliana returns the sentiment easily.

Texting is easy though. Being away from each other doesn’t pose problems like being together would. She tries not to think about it, but she can’t help it.

She wonders what it would be like if they were together. Would she go with Valentina on a trip like this? Would she be left alone for months while Valentina goes to film a show or a movie? What would she do when Valentina has a fancy awards show or premiere to go to and she has nothing to wear for the occasion?

The questions and worries bombard her from all directions. She barely sleeps. Her only saving grace is the heart emoji that Val sends when she says goodnight. It eases some of the tension that is thrumming through her body.

Val is still away for a couple days and it’s weird to say the least. She loves talking to her. She loves their conversations, especially the ones they have late at night when they’re feeling introspective and brave. She feels safe when she’s talking to Valentina. She feels like she can talk about anything without the fear of being judged or mocked. She confides in Val like she never has with anyone else before.

But things feel uncertain anytime she isn't talking to Valentina. It’s like Val is the only thing that calms her. As soon as one of them is too busy to talk her mind goes right back into hyperdrive.

The café is suddenly much busier. Her Instagram has tons of new followers. And she feels like people are watching her now. She is on edge all the time. It’s like being linked to Valentina has put a spotlight on her.

She tries to relax and just get through the next few days that Val is away but it gets more and more difficult to talk herself down.

She posts a photo on Thursday morning. It’s nothing special, just a picture her mom took while they were in the park together. She is standing in the middle of a pathway looking at her mom and laughing. She looks happy and the park around her is lush and beautiful. She is wearing something she designed herself, an old army jacket that she repurposed and decorated with patches and spray-painted phrases.

She didn’t know her mom was taking the picture, but she really likes it. She posts it with no caption and only two hashtags, but it blows up. It gets more likes than the rest of her pictures combined. The comments are blowing up and most of what people are saying isn’t good.

“This girl is who Val decided to date?” One comment reads and 50 people have liked it.

“I can’t believe Valentina likes her. Look at that ridiculous jacket.” Another comment mocks and ten people have liked it.

There are some comments that are good but the majority are nasty. It sends Juliana into a tailspin. She knows that if Val wasn't in her life none of this would be happening. People are tearing her down simply because Valentina has chosen to show an interest in her. They are either jealous or think they should get a say in the situation.

Even seeing Val's simple comment, "Hermosa," with a heart emoji isn't enough to calm her down. 

She has never been someone who craves attention. Attention, in her house, was never a good thing. If she drew her father's attention to her, it would mostly be for a bad reason. He was a drunk and a violent one at that.

She can't cope with all this new attention she is being paid.

Friday morning she opens the cafe with Sergio. They have both taken on more shifts together since the sudden increase in popularity of the small café. The owners are certainly pleased with all the new business the shop is getting.

Valentina is one of the first people through the door. Her smile is wide and beautiful.

Juliana is so torn. She has already fallen hard for Valentina, more than she ever could have anticipated. The actress is everything she has ever wanted in a woman, but she doesn't think she can handle everything that comes with her.

She only just came out to her own mother. How is she expected to come out to the world now? She isn't ready.

Valentina makes her way to the counter and reads Juliana's distance immediately.

"I was gonna ask if you were happy to see me but it feels like you're not." Her brow is furrowed with confusion.

"Val," Juliana starts to say in a defeated tone, but Valentina cuts her off sharply.

"I came here straight from the airport," she admits almost shyly. Her tone tears through Juliana's heart. "I missed you," she whispers it, but her eyes lock onto Juliana's bravely.

Juliana is cursing herself and what she is about to do. She knows she can't handle all the pressure that will come with being with Val though.

She can see Sergio watching their interaction. He tries to pretend he isn't listening but Juliana knows he is. He's been trying to convince her for the past 24 hours not to do what she is planning, to no avail. She sees him practically flinching at Val's words.

"Val, can you wait a while and we can talk?" Juliana offers sounding detached.

"Juliana you promised," she snaps back. It’s the angriest she has ever seen Val and she is taken aback. "You said you'd be waiting for me..." she trails off getting frustrated. Her voice has gotten louder and she draws the attention of a few people nearby.

Juliana knows they can't do this here. She rounds the counter and takes Val's hand. She pulls her into the back of the shop catching Sergio's eye as she does. He nods and she knows he will cover for her.

As soon as she pulls Valentina into the back room and kitchen of the café, she closes the door quickly behind them. She has a feeling this is going to get loud.

“Juliana,” Valentina starts in an authoritative tone. “What’s happened? What’s wrong?” Juliana avoids her eyes. She is finding it harder than she thought she would to break things off. “Everything was fine before I left.” She looks up then, meeting Val’s eye. Val is watching her with piercing eyes that are filled with confusion and sorrow. “You kissed me.”

“I know I did.” Juliana can’t take it; she has to say something.

“Do you regret it?”

“Of course not,” the honesty spills from her before she can stop it. She doesn’t regret it though. As much as things have gone off the rails in the last few days, she could never regret kissing Valentina.

“Then why are you acting this way?” Val bites out the question. Her eyes are glassy and her cheeks are flushed.

“I don’t know if we should continue with this,” Juliana tries to explain. It’s not coming out the way she intended.

“With what?” Valentina asks roughly.

She isn’t sure how to describe what they are. They aren’t together. Not officially by any means, but she knows that’s where this was heading.

“With us being together,” she fumbles through the words. She feels like her stomach has dropped to her feet. Her legs might be going numb. She twists her fingers together trying to keep her confidence in her decision.

Val just stares at her for a moment. Juliana’s words are clearly weighing heavy on her. Tears are brimming in her eyes on the verge of falling. She swallows noticeably.

“Juliana, prometiste,” Valentina says with disbelief. Her voice sounds like it’s about to break. 

Juliana takes a small step closer. “Vale, I was being naïve. I didn’t realize how complicated things were going to get.”

“What do you mean complicated?”

“Suddenly it feels like everyone is watching me. People who don’t even know me are judging me simply because we are spending time together. Articles are being written about me, about us. We have even defined what we are to each other.” She pushes the heel of her hand into her forehead. “I don’t think I’m ready for something like this.”

“Juliana,” Valentina grabs her hands and pulls them closer together. “Please don’t do this. I have never felt this way about anyone before. No man, no woman, no one.” She drops one of Juliana’s hands in favor of cupping her cheek. “I have never confided in anyone the way I can confide in you.” Her thumb strokes across Juliana’s face. “I missed you while I was gone, so much.”

Juliana leans into her touch unintentionally. Her eyes flutter for a moment. She resolves to be more upfront.

“Val, I feel the same. I do,” she clarifies. They stand frozen staring at one another for a few moments. Val looks even more torn now that she knows that Juliana feels the same way. She exhales noisily and Juliana knows she has to keep talking. “I missed you, too. So much. I have never felt this way before, and if things were different, I’m sure we could be amazing.”

“Different how?” Her hand is still holding Juliana’s face tenderly.

“If we were just two normal people.” She takes a deep shuddering breath. “I’m not good at feeling exposed. I’m a private person. The kind of attention you get makes me anxious.”

“You get used to it, Juli. I can try to be more private. I really think we could be something. That this could go somewhere,” she pleads desperately.

Juliana doesn’t have a chance to respond. Valentina leans in and kisses her so softly she can barely feel it. She leans in making the contact more solid. It only lasts a second before the door opens. Sergio sheepishly leans into the kitchen and the two women spring apart.

“Lo siento,” he says timidly. “Juliana, we have a huge breakfast rush. I need your help.” He leaves them alone again knowing Juliana will come right out.

“I’m sorry, Vale. Tengo que ir.” She starts to walk back toward the front. Val grabs her hand and she turns back to face her.

“Por favor, give this a chance,” she begs.

Juliana looks at their hands and squeezes before looking into Valentina’s eyes. She swallows thickly trying hard not to cry.

“I can’t.”

She drops Valentina’s hand and walks through to the front. She takes a second to take a deep breath and wipes a tear off her face before she goes back to work.

Valentina sneaks out of the back a few minutes later. She doesn’t say anything, but Juliana watches her go and can see that she’s been crying. It breaks her. 

Val leaves without saying a word, her bodyguards flanking her as she goes outside. Sergio reaches over and squeezes her hand when they are both facing away from the customers.

“You okay?”

Juliana can only shake her head. She doesn’t trust that she won’t burst into tears if she talks about it.

The rest of the day goes by in a blur. Juliana can’t stop running through their conversation and all her reasons for pushing Valentina away. She has no idea if she made the right decision or not. She felt like she was. When she mentally prepared all her points for why this wasn’t a good idea, she was sure. She still feels deeply for Valentina, but she doesn’t think being anything more than friends would be smart. It would blow up in their faces.

But explaining all those reasons to Valentina’s heartbroken face? Saying all those things out loud and watching her words cut through Valentina like broken glass? That was completely different. It made her question everything.

She thought maybe they could stay friends and that way she wouldn’t lose Val all together. She thought it wouldn’t be so hard, but she underestimated how deep their feelings already were.

She shuffles through the rest of her shift at the café and makes her way home in a trance. She had good reasons, or she thought she did. But if she loses Val completely now, she isn’t sure how she will cope.

She gets home and falls tiredly onto her bed. Her phone buzzes and she lazily puts it over her head into her eyeline.

She nearly drops it on her face when she sees that it’s a text from Valentina.

“I know you think us being together is a bad idea, but I’m not giving up so easily Juliana.”

She can’t help the smile that spreads across her face. She should have known. Val didn’t back down in the beginning when it seemed like she didn’t stand a chance, why would she back down now. Juliana has given her hope. They’ve gotten to know each other and they clearly both have feelings for each other. That isn’t the problem anymore.

She wonders what Valentina is going to try now to get her attention. She wonders what Valentina will do to try and assuage her fears.

She decides to text Vale back. She isn’t sure what to say, but she wants to be truthful.

“I wish things could be different, Vale. I still want to be friends if you think you can do that.”

Val doesn’t answer her for so long that she eventually goes to bed. She wakes up to her alarm the next morning and a text is waiting for her.

“I just want you in my life, Juli.”

A few days go by without much interaction between Juliana and Valentina. News coverage about them has tapered off and Val is being much more cryptic with her social media than usual.

Juliana wonders if this is her attempt at proving things could be different for them. Pulling herself back from the public eye more. It makes her a little sad that Valentina feels like she has to change. That isn’t what she wanted. Val is perfect. She just didn’t think she could handle the scrutiny of a life lived for the world to see.

Valentina is coming off a huge success on her first foray into film work. Her next project is just getting started, so there is extra attention on her lately. Juliana knows it’s not Valentina’s fault. She is utterly charming, no one can resist her. Of course, she is one of the most popular actresses in Mexico right now. She wants to tell Val that she doesn’t have to hide from her fans, but she doesn’t want to give her false hope.

Juliana doesn’t see or hear from Val for the rest of the weekend. It makes her heart physically ache not to talk to Valentina, but she knows she has to try at least for a while not to. If they could both just get some space, maybe they could be friends without all the pain of what ifs following them.

Tuesday she is working her normal closing shift. She can’t stop herself from hoping that Valentina will walk through the door at some point. Her eyes snap to the entrance every time the bell chimes with a new customer. 

They haven’t seen or spoken to each other since Friday night and she misses her desperately. She’s tempted to text her, but she decides against it.

Nora comes in at her usual time and they talk for a few minutes. She tells her friend about what has happened, but not all the gory details. Nora is noticeably saddened by the news.

“I thought you guys would be perfect together,” she says sheepishly. 

Juliana holds back the me too that pops into her mind. “It’s for the best.”

“I’m sorry, Juli.”

She brings Nora her order and goes back to working. She is wiping down the counters mindlessly when Sergio walks up next to her.

“Are you gonna be okay?” he asks softly.

“Yeah,” she answers on instinct. No one actually wants the truth when they ask that, do they?

“You don’t have to put up a front with me, Juliana,” Sergio promises.

She contemplates how she is really feeling. “I will be, eventually.”

He nods, accepting that answer easily.

“JULIANA!” a squeal from Nora interrupts their moment.

Both of their heads snap forward to watch as Nora runs up to the counter.

“Que?” Juliana says slightly worried.

Nora shoves her phone into Juliana’s hands. Juliana looks at the phone and then back to Nora with a confused, furrowed brow.

“Watch,” she says while frantically pointing to the phone.

She looks at the phone and sees a live stream of Una Charla Con Victoria, a popular talk show. The camera cuts to their guest and she sees Valentina with a poster of her most recent film behind her. She is confused as to why Nora wanted her to watch this until she hears Victoria’s next question.

“There have been some rumors going around the internet that you have a new flame?”

Valentina looks uncomfortable momentarily before her professional façade slips into place.

“There were rumors yes…” she trails off before she gets to explain fully. Victoria jumps on the opportunity.

“You took to Instagram for help,” she leads in and the picture behind them switches to Valentina’s Instagram post about Juliana instead of the movie poster. “You asked if anyone could help you find out more about this girl.”

“Juliana,” Valentina supplies quickly.

“More about Juliana,” she corrects. The picture changes again and Juliana scoffs. She can’t imagine being put on the spot like this. The picture of Val kissing her cheek fills the screen. “And then you were photographed just a few days after looking pretty cozy together.” Victoria’s voice is heavy with implication.

The picture changes to them holding hands on their walk near the café. “Is love in the air?”

A final question, a final nail in Valentina’s coffin as they put up the picture of her and Juliana kissing the day she left to scout locations.

Juliana looks up to Sergio. “That is not fair,” she says helplessly. He shushes her quickly.

“Look at her,” he points at Vale.

She looks like she might not answer the question. She is looking around at the different cameras pointed at her noticeably nervous. Then determination sets in. She takes a deep breath and looks down to collect herself.

“Actually, she told me she doesn’t want to pursue anything romantic.”

The audience in the studio awes and boos loudly in response to her obvious sadness. Juliana’s heart clenches.

“Is she crazy?” Victoria jumps in with bewilderment. Her voice is playfully outraged.

“No,” Valentina answers firmly. Her face gives away that she doesn’t like Victoria calling Juliana that. “No, she isn’t crazy,” she adds for good measure. “She has her reasons. Good reasons, but I know we could get through it, together.”

Juliana is surprised that Valentina is being so honest. She’s even more shocked that Valentina admitted her reasons are good. She didn’t expect that with the way Valentina reacted to them when she first heard them.

“So, you like her?” Victoria pushes.

Valentina starts nodding immediately. “I do,” she says softly.

“Do you want to tell her something?” Victoria asks, gesturing toward the camera.

Valentina seems caught off guard by the suggestion. The entire interview has been one surprise after another. Juliana thinks she might throw up and she isn’t even the one on live TV.

Val’s face sets and she faces the camera dead on. “Juliana,” she starts strongly and it’s like everyone else fades away. The sounds of the café disappear. Juliana only hears Valentina’s voice. She might pass out.

“You are amazing. You make me better without even trying. You are so smart and so beautiful. And I…” she swallows roughly, her fingers twist together in her lap. “I’m in love with you.”

She nearly drops the phone. Sergio starts whooping loudly bringing Juliana back into reality. He pumps his first victoriously. She shushes him sharply so she can hear what Valentina says next.

They cut the shot to Victoria for a moment and she looks stunned. It cuts back to Valentina and she is smiling softly.

“I’m in love with you and I think we can do this.”

Juliana thinks she should pinch herself, make sure she isn’t dreaming.

They go back to Victoria and she is starting to recover. She sends them to a commercial as soon as the words come to her, so they can get things back under control.

Sergio starts bouncing up and down as Juliana stares unseeing at a tampon commercial. Nora gingerly takes the phone from Juliana’s hands. She is staring at her with a lip pulled between her teeth.

“WELL?!” Sergio bellows. He is freaking out and she isn’t sure she can even feel her limbs. She looks up at him completely mystified. “Go get her!” he instructs gleefully.

She looks at Nora who is nodding enthusiastically and nods back once.

“Okay, okay,” she says out of breath. She looks back at Sergio.

“GO!”

Sergio covers for her and she takes off further into downtown. She hails a taxi and since the studio where they were filming wasn’t far, she gets there in only a few minutes. She throws some money at the driver and hops out before the car has even fully stopped moving.

She isn’t sure where to go from here though. She isn’t anyone important, they probably won’t just let her stroll into a television studio for no reason.

There is a crowd of fans and paparazzi alike gathering at the main door of the building. As Juliana is walking closer to them, they start to get noisy. The fans are cheering and screeching Valentina’s name and the paparazzi are readying their cameras asking for smiles and poses from the actress. 

Then Juliana sees her.

She is walking out behind her bodyguards. They are creating a wall for her, parting the crowd with ease. Valentina strides through the crowd ignoring both the fans and the paparazzi. She looks beautiful. She is clearly deep in thought as she makes her way to a waiting SUV.

Juliana rushes forward trying to get her attention. Valentina seems to be lost in thought though. Finally, she thinks she gets close enough to be heard. Valentina is just a few feet from the car when Juliana starts yelling her name.

“Valentina!” she screams as loud as she can. Valentina doesn’t react. She clearly hasn’t heard Juliana. She tries again. “VALE!”

That does the trick. Just as Valentina is moving to get into the SUV she turns and catches Juliana’s eye.

She freezes.

Juliana freezes.

Their eyes stay locked and Juliana feels her heart racing exponentially. She is so completely shocked. This beautiful woman loves her. Valentina loves her and she just told the world that on live television.

With that in mind she starts running toward her.

Valentina responds in kind. She moves quickly toward Juliana. Her bodyguards react immediately, moving to create a new path for her. Juliana struggles to get through the many people in her way, but she manages. Val rushes to Juliana and they meet in the middle surrounded by people they don’t even know.

Camera flashes are going off and people are shouting and the only thing Juliana cares about is Val. 

They meet and Juliana pulls Val into a deep kiss. She cups her face lightly and kisses her like she has never kissed anyone before. Valentina’s hand wraps tightly around her back and she feels a soft hum leave the actress as their tongues briefly meet. The kiss is electric. Their mouths fit perfectly and it’s unlike anything Juliana has ever experienced. Her hands slip into Valentina’s hair, pulling her impossibly closer until one of the guards at Val’s back clears his throat.

Juliana wants to hate him for interrupting, but he has a point. They are surrounded by paparazzi.

They pull away from one another but not far. There is only enough space for them to look into each other’s eyes. Their bodies are still pressed firmly together.

“Juli, what –” Valetina starts to ask, but Juliana cuts her off.

“Yo tambien estoy enamorada de ti,” she confesses clearly.

It’s strong and confident. She says it loud enough for most of the photographers to hear her and she knows that. She doesn’t care. What she does care about is the smile that blooms across Val’s face. That’s what she cares about and it is stunning.

“You are?” Valentina asks with a disbelieving but hopeful smile on her face.

“I am,” Juliana reassures firmly. And the smile that follows that is even better.

“I love you,” Valentina whispers breathlessly.

“I love you, too.”

Sergio laughs happily at the title of the article that comes up on his BuzzfeedMX.

“Valentina Carvajal Is In LOVE and It’s Adorable.”

**Author's Note:**

> I also have no idea if Mexico has something like Buzzfeed or what it would be called, so I created the name BuzzfeedMX on my own. Apologies if it already exists and isn't called that, because frankly it should be lol.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed! Comments are highly appreciated and will be responded to!  
> Molly


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